FOND DU LAC, WI (WTAQ) – One man is dead after two ATVs plunged through the ice on Lake Winnebago, around 9:30 Monday night.
Sheriff Officials say 55-year-old Peter A. Zacherl was rescued from the water and taken to the hospital but did not survive.
The incident happened off the Fond du Lac River near Lakeshore Drive and Franklin Avenue.
A 23-year-old man and a 22-year-old woman were on one machine, following Zacherl on another machine.
A 69-year-old man was following on a third ATV.
Authorities say the first two machines plunged through the ice in eight feet of water.
Fond Du Lac County Sheriff Officials say two ATV’s crossed over an area that had a pressure crack that they did not see caused by recent winds.
“It froze over and there was one to two inches of ice and they did not know what they were encountering.”
Captain William Tadych says the 23-year-old man helped the woman get out of the water.
He tried to help the other man, but couldn’t get him out of the water.
Rescue crews pulled both men out of the water.
The other man and woman were also taken to the hospital. They were treated and released.
Tadych says they offer one reminder that sometimes gets overlooked.
“One of the biggest things that we stress is to wear personal floatation devices, nobody had it in this case.”
He said being on the ice in the dark makes it difficult to see ice conditions and the snowfall in the area will also impact visibility.
The 69-year-old man was not injured.
The incident remains under investigation by the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office and Wisconsin DNR.
